Anthony JoshuaMBE will defend his World Heavyweight titles against Kubrat Pulev at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on October 28, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Joshua returns to the ring following his epic battle with Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium in April where the Brit added the WBA strap to his IBF belt in an enthralling contest with the future hall-of-fame legend, climbing off the canvas to record an 19th straight KO win in front of a record-breaking crowd in London.

The unbeaten Olympic gold medal hero will now tackle his IBF mandatory Pulev, the Bulgarian rated number one in the IBF facing his second World title challenge having faced Klitschko for the IBF title in November 2014. ‘The Cobra’ became a two-time European champion after the fight with a win over Dereck Chisora, and the 36 year old picked up and defended the WBA Inter-Continental title with wins over two former World title foes of ‘Dr Steelhammer’ in Samuel Peter and Kevin Johnson.

“October 28 can’t come soon enough, I have been eager to get back in the ring since Wembley and now we are confirmed and ready,” said Joshua. “I’ll be locked away focusing on fight number 20 for the next eight weeks. I am excited to experience the atmosphere in a sold out Principality Stadium and aim to give the fans a spectacular night.”

“Anthony is a formidable opponent,” said Pulev. “We will not hug and hold, we will not run; we will stand and fight. His style fits mine perfectly and in boxing, styles make fights. My preparation will be very intense, and I will be perfectly ready when I enter the ring so that he will have no chance to beat me.”

“I’m delighted that we will be in Cardiff at the magnificent Principality Stadium for the next step of the AJ journey,” said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn. “Nearly 80,000 will gather on October 28 to create another unforgettable night of boxing. Anthony will meet his mandatory challenger, number one ranked Kubrat Pulev and the card will be stacked with World championship action, domestic title fights and the very best young stars in the game. Get ready for the next episode from the biggest star in World boxing.”

“Anthony is a great champion and his last fight ignited the division,” said Pulev’s promoter Kalle Sauerland. “However, by his own admission, he is still learning and Pulev is not the sort of opponent you want to learn against. Kubrat and his train Uli Wegner – Europe’s most successful professional coach – have studied every weakness for the Cobra to strike victoriously.”

Mark Williams, General Manager at Principality Stadium which is owned and operated by the Welsh Rugby Union, said: “Our national stadium is a true Heavyweight when it comes to bringing major events to Cardiff and today’s announcement strengthens our status as a year-round, multi-events arena, in the heart of a city-centre renowned for delivering a Welsh welcome to visitors from around the world.

“This year we’ve hosted 400,000 plus visitors across UEFA Champions League Final, Speedway and the RBS Six Nations; two sell-out Coldplay gigs and Robbie Williams and Justin Bieber concerts. The Joshua-Pulev fight is guaranteed to another spectacle which, thanks to our Terraplas pitch covering, brings another world-class event to town two weeks before Wales’ Under Armour Series.”

An announcement on ticket prices and on-sale dates will be made this week and the first undercard fights will be released in the coming days. (more…)

Wladimir Klitschko, Juan Manuel, and Timothy Bradley have decided to hand the gloves up on their outstanding boxing careers. Both men are Hall of Fame fighters in my opinion. Neither one can be accused of dodging any fighter and while neither may be considered the best, they would’ve given anyone trouble in any era of boxing!

Let’s start with Timothy Ray “Desert Storm” Bradley, Jr. Timmy ends his career with 33 wins, only 2 losses, and a questionable draw. He has 13 wins by knockout. His only losses were to Manny Pacquiao, and there is no shame in losing to (arguably) the best fighter of this era.

Timothy Bradley won five world championships in two different weight classes. There was a stretch from 2007 – 2016 when he took on the following fighters IN ORDER:

Bradley didn’t have the biggest punch in the world, but he always fought like he did. His heart was unquestionable and he was a “dog” in the ring. You came out always knowing you were in a fight and taking him out was almost impossible.

I’ll miss him. My favorite parts of his career are when he punked Devon Alexander and made him quit. Devon had cuts due to punches and a head-butt, but when asked which eye was giving him trouble he pointed to the one which didn’t have the bad damage. Bradley took the fight out of him.

I also remember when Kendall Holt landed his money punch (the left hook) to Bradley and I thought the fight was over. Check out the 40-second mark of the video below and then watch Bradley’s head and eyes on the slow motion replay at 44 seconds. It still amazes me how Bradley popped right up afterwards and went on to win the fight.

Next up is Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez Mendez, (56-7-1, 40 KOs), who help nine world titles in four different classes. He fought in five total weight classes. Marquez lost his first fight, then rolled off 29 wins in a row before losing his WBA featherweight shot against Freddie Norwood. Less than four years later he got his second chance and won the vacant IBF featherweight strap. Later that year, he unified and won the WBA title over Derrick Gainer.

In 2004, he fought the lineal champion Manny Pacquiao and despite being dropped three times in the first, the fight ended in a split-decision draw.

Over the course of the next few years he jumped between featherweight, super featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and took on all comers.

Marquez will be known for three things, being one of the best counter-punchers in boxing, his four fights with Pacquiao, and the shot heard across the world on December 8, 2012 (against Pacquiao).

And then came the shot that shocked the boxing world! Marquez’s fourth and final fight with Manny Pacquiao. Marquez didn’t get any breaks in the previous three fights so decided to create one for himself.

It was perhaps the most significant punch of the past decade. “He’s not getting up Jim, he’s not getting up Jim, he’s not getting up Jim!”, exclaimed Roy Jones Jr.

His final fight was against Mike Alvarado. Check out his career in professional boxing. In it he fought:

For young fans who don’t know, Marquez was a Hall of Famer before the Pacquiao knockout.

Finally we have Wladimir Wladimirowitsch “Dr. Steelhammer” Klitschko or Володи́мир Кличко́ who ends his career at 64 wins, 5 defeats, with 53 big wins by KO.

Many fans and media find it difficult where to play Wlad in the all-time heavyweight great category. Whenever such a difficult task happens, you have to look at the accomplishments of the fighter in their era.

If you do that, Wladimir is in the Top 10. He defended his title 23 times, second only to the great Joe Louis.

Klitschko had a polarizing style, as he was considered dull by man-a-fan and media member. His circling jab and cerebral style wasn’t what fans of action fights wanted to see. It was too “robotic” they would say.

How odd is it then that his final fight, a action-packed loss at age 41, gives fans something to remember for many years?

Klitschko lost to Anthony Joshua (19-0, 19 KOs) in a fight where 90,000 fans created an electric atmosphere. The old man didn’t let them down in a fight In the fifth round, Joshua came out and jumped on Klitschko, sending him to the canvas. An angry Klitschko got up and dominated Joshua for the rest of the round. We’ve never seen this from Wlad. In the past, if Wlad goes down, Wlad doesn’t recover to do anything of note.

In the case of the Joshua fight, Wladimir came out in the next round and landed a straight right hand to drop Joshua hard. Joshua was in trouble and the old man came to finish him off but couldn’t. Joshua was gassed beyond description and the old man was one big punch away from ending it.

Despite not being able to finish, Klitschko won his share of rounds until the 11th round. Joshua attacked Wlad and landed an uppercut that would’ve kept the younger version of Klitschko (and most heavyweights down for good. Somehow the old man stood up but was badly hurt. Follow up combinations, ending with a left hook dropped Wlad. Klitschko got up, and series of punches floored Klitschko another left hook. Wlad was up and as AJ came to finish him the referee stopped it. The replay showed most of the shots missed and Wlad, though extremely tired, deserved an opportunity to finish.

If the knock on him was that he was boring, Wladimir Klitschko did more for some fans going out with that loss than he did in all of his wins.

Wladimir ducked nobody in his career. Some of the notable opponents he fought:

If this match takes place in New York as it is rumored, then the heavyweight picture will become clearer. Wilder, maybe the most protected champion in boxing, needs to add a real name on his resume outside of Bermane Stiverne. And to be honest, do we really know how good Stiverne is? He beat the overrated and overweight Chris Arreola twice. Big deal. He also beat the world renowned Ray Austin. Whoopie!

Wilder had a much easier time disposing of Malik Scott, scoring a KO in the first round. Ortiz, a monster many fighters have continuously ducked, couldn’t catch up to Scott and settled for a disappointing twelve round decision.

On the other hand, Wilder has regressed since beating Scott and Stiverne. He struggled with household names such as Gerald Washington, Arthur Szpilka, and Eric Molina. Molina came within a punch or two of knocking Wilder down and maybe out.

Ortiz looked unbeatable in winning by knockout over Tony Thompson and Bryant Jennings. However at age 38 and being off a year when the proposed fight takes place, this matchup turns out to be interesting.

Wilder won’t have to worry about much movement as Ortiz will stalk and try to get inside or at comfortable range from the outside. Ortiz is an exceptional inside fighter and Wilder definitely struggles in that area.

In this fight, Wilder needs to watch tape. He should watch tape of himself, not Ortiz. There’s only one fight he should observe and that’s his fight with Stiverne. It’s almost as if that Wilder showed up for one night and we haven’t seen him since. Deontay should use his superior athleticism to beat the slower, sometimes plodding Ortiz to the punch. Deontay must jab as often as possible and fight big, as his frame suggests. He had problems with Szpilka’s rough inside tactics and I’m sure Team Ortiz is aware. If Ortiz is rusty or if he’s lost a step, he could be tailor made for Wilder’s athleticism and lateral movement. Wilder needs to clinch every time Ortiz gets inside. One thing Wilder has is possibly the best right hand in the division, if not it’s in the top three. He needs to throw it from different angles and show Ortiz who is boss. He should also beware of Ortiz’s good counterpunching.

Ortiz’s job is to put Wilder on his back foot and keep him there. Jab and double and triple it up. Follow with big left hands. The key is if he can’t get in range to land the big left hand, Ortiz needs to make it a rough inside fight. Wilder will be out of his element and this is right up Kong’s alley. Kong also should work the body to break Wilder down. Wilder has the body of a god, but the legs of a lightweight. A good shot to the chin should drop him, but working the body will slow those legs down and lead to positive results. If Ortiz is rusty or slow, he can still survive with the slightest movement. The key is not to be a stationary target. Also, look to slip the wide shots of Wilder and counter them, which is Ortiz’s strength.

There are many questions to be answered in this matchup. Will Ortiz come up clean before and after the fight? Has his age and inactivity caught up with him? What has Deontay Wilder done to improve defensively? Is he ready for a step up against a fearsome puncher like Ortiz?

In the end, this fight is great for boxing and a continuation of a fantastic 2017. Deontay Wilder is frighteningly easy to hit. And this is by C+ and B- fighters he’s been with in the ring. While he has a three inch height advantage on Ortiz, Kong has a one inch reach advantage. Kong fought three times in 2015 and three times in 2016. He hasn’t fought at all in 2017 and this fight is slated for November. This could even the odds in Wilder’s favor. Wilder fought three times in 2015, twice in 2016, and beat Washington in February of this year.

I hope this fight is made. The heavyweight division is exciting again with the mix of youth and experience:

Kal Yafai defends WBA Super Flyweight title against Suguru Muranaka This Saturday, May 13th on AWE-A Wealth of Entertainment

SAN DIEGO, CALIF. – May 9, 2017 – Kal Yafai says Anthony Joshua MBE has set a new benchmark for British fighters to follow as he prepares to make the first defence of his WBA World Super-Flyweight title against Suguru Muranaka at the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham on Saturday LIVE on AWE- A Wealth of Entertainment at 3 PM ET / 12 Noon PT.

For boxing fans who don’t have access to AWE, the fight will be available on the AWE channel on www.klowdtv.com

Yafai and Joshua are close from their days as Team GB teammates, and Yafai won the crown he defends on home turf this weekend on the undercard of Joshua’s win over Eric Molina in Manchester in December.

Yafai was unable to attend Joshua’s epic win over Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium last weekend, but the 27 year old was bursting with pride as Joshua KO’d the Ukrainian in the 11th round, and believes that Joshua has raised the bar higher than ever for British fighters.

“I was unbelievably proud and happy for Anthony Joshua,” said Yafai. “When he got put down I was very nervous, I was praying for him to get up and recover and that’s what he did. It showed what a World Champion needs to do when it gets tough in there.

“He has completely smashed it now, onto bigger and better things for him. The world is his oyster. It was such a hard and big fight. I’d like to see him fight Tyson Fury but it doesn’t sound like that’s possible to happen next. If he can get a defence for one of his Titles against a contender then move onto one of the other Heavyweights like Wilder would be great.

Anthony JOSHUA TKO-11 over Wladimir KLITSCHKO: AJ, the World is Yours!!!

In one of the best heavyweight fights of all time, Anthony “AJ” Joshua defeated Wladimir “Dr. Steelhammer” Klitschko in front of 90,000+ fans at London’s (UK) Wembley Stadium.

The fight featured knockdowns of each fighter, with Klitschko up 95-93 on TheFightJournal.com’s scorecard at the time of stoppage.

Joshua, (19-0, 19 KOs), defended his IBF World heavyweight title and also captured the vacant WBA title. Klitschko, (64-5, 54 KOs), was seeking to become a three-time World heavyweight champion with a win.

Joshua:

“I’m not perfect, but I’m trying.”

“I got a bit emotional because I know I have doubters. I’m only going to improve.”

“Sometimes you can be a phenomenal boxer, but boxing is about character.”

Klitschko:

“The best man won tonight, and it’s an amazing moment for boxing.”

“Anthony was better today than I. It’s really sad that I didn’t make it tonight.”

“I was planning to do it. It didn’t work. But all the respect to Anthony.”

SOPHIA, Bulgaria —(April 27, 2017) – The official weigh in was held today for tomorrow’s (Friday, April 28) “Final Countdown” event, headlined by a heavyweight match between former world title contenders Kubrat “The Cobra” Pulev and Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson.

FITE TV will stream “Final Countdown” live on pay per view, starting at 2 p.m. ET /11 a.m. PT, from Armeec Arena in Sofia, Bulgaria. Encore presentations will also be available to watch.

FITE TV is a Combat Sports Network that features boxing, MMA and wrestling programming. FITE gives viewers the choice to watch the program on line at www.FITE.tv, on their mobile device or on their WiFi connected television using the FITE app. The FITE app can be downloaded for free at Google Play or the iTunes app stores.

“Final Countdown: Pulev vs. Johnson”, promoted by Sauerland Promotions, is available to watch on the FITE app and website for a suggested retail price of $19.99.

Boxing fans may watch the entire card simply by downloading the FITE app and then cast the fight to the big screen by using the instant stream-to-TV function. The FITE app works with any Wi-Fi connected television around the world, iOS and Android devices, as well as streaming devices such as Roku, Chromecast and more. Fans may also watch the fights live on the FITE website at www.fite.tv from any computer.

ABOUT FITE TV: FITE TV (www.fite.tv) is a programming network that brings live and on-demand ring sports programs to MMA, wrestling and boxing fans around the world. With only access to a smartphone and a connected TV, with the FITE app, viewers can watch live events, on-demand programming, interviews and fighting sports related movies and documentaries on the big TV screen.

During the last few months, FITE has tripled the viewing time by user and has become a shared-space for die-hard fight fans to stay connected to their favorite sport every day. As a full-fledged TV programming network, FITE televises live pay-per-views and TV tapings on a weekly schedule.

FITE was launched on February 9th, 2016 as a product of Flipps Media Inc, a company that brings digital entertainment content (movies, news and video) on television with its patented tap-to-stream functionality. Flipps Media Inc. is funded by EarlyBird Venture Capital, Tim Draper and LAUNCHub.

ABOUT MP & Silva: MP & Silva owns, manages and distributes television and media rights to some of the most prestigious sports events around the world, with a portfolio that provides over 10,000 hours of programming annually to over 200 broadcasters in 215 countries. MP & Silva also provides complimentary sponsorship, digital and technology services. Headquartered in London and Singapore, it operates worldwide through regional offices in Beijing, Budapest, Dubai, Dublin, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur, Luxembourg, Miami, Monaco, Munich, New York, Paris, Taipei, Tokyo and Warsaw. In May 2016, MP & Silva created a strategic partnership with Everbright, a leading financial services company in China and Baofeng, an internet entertainment and technology company, specializing in Virtual Reality and digital entertainment, through an investment from Shanghai Jin Xin investment fund (“Shanghai Jin Xin”). For more information visit http://mpsilva.com/